In retrospect, David Ayer is proud of what he achieved with his take on “Scarface,” even though the film didn’t get made. “One of the best scripts I’ve ever written was my Scarface draft,” Ayer told Total Film. “It gets passed around in Hollywood, underground. It’s funny when people talk about the project. ‘Is it the Ayer script?’ ‘No, it’s somebody else.’ ‘Oh, OK.'”
Calling “Scarface” the biggest piece of intellectual property after “Jurassic Park,” Ayer explained to Total Film that the version he was hoping to make with his reboot didn’t quite line up with Universal’s hopes for the film. While the studio wanted to capture as big an audience as they could, that approach didn’t quite sync with his plans. “I f***ing love Universal. Amazing people. I had this really honest conversation about the movie they wish they had, and the movie that I wished to make,” Ayer told Total Film. “There’s a lot of daylight between us. It’s just easier to be like, ‘Let’s park this.'”
Another attempt to reboot “Scarface” happened in 2020, when “Call Me by Your Name” director Luca Guadagnino was brought aboard to helm the film. At the time, Guadagnino said he wanted his “Scarface” remake to be R-rated, shocking, and current. In November of 2023, however, Guadagnino confirmed for The Hindu that he left the “Scarface” remake, which was based on a script by “Fargo” and “No Country for Old Men” Oscar winners Joel and Ethan Coen.
The original version of “Scarface” was released in 1932. Directed by Howard Hawks and Richard Rosson, “Scarface” stars Paul Muni in the title role.
